Sweeny Todd

[Temis the Vorta]

Finally saw it, a lot of fun, singing from the non-Broadway stars in the cast wasn't too bad. Johnny Depp was having a lot of fun tearing around and making faces. I vaguely recall having seen a Broadway performance on PBS and the small snippet of lyrics I recall wasn't in the movie (I think this is how it ends, in fact):

Attend the tale of Sweeney Todd
He served a dark and a hungry god
To seek revenge may lead to hell
But everyone does it, and seldom as well
As Sweeny, Sweeny Todd
The demon barber of Fleet Street

I read some reviews complaining that a lot of it had been edited out, including the chorus which sings those lines. Too bad, I think having a Greek Chorus could have added something.

 

[OdoWanKenobi]

The Ballad Of Sweeney Todd was cut completely from the movie becuase Burton felt it was too theatrical for the film. I can understand where's he coming from with that.

I enjoyed the film immensely and have watched it at least five times since I bought the DVD.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

That's funny - Burton's style is hardly "realistic" so theatrical and stylized elements like having singers come outta nowhere and start commenting on the story wouldn't have struck me as out of place in the least. And Depp and Bonham-Carter were really taking it way over the top, so they didn't seem to think they were in a realistic movie, either.

 

[The Grinch Doctor]

I finally saw it a couple of weeks ago. Very wacky and bizarre, but I love wacky and bizarre, so that works out.

I naturally loved Depp, Carter and Rickman, and being the Greek Mythology fanatic that I am, I loved the tragic ending. The music was good, although nothing really stuck with me. I'll probably have to watch it again for that.

 

[Harvey]

I finally saw it a few weeks ago as well, strangely enough. I'm not sure how I felt about all the visuals. All the pale white people started to get to me after a while, and I've never been a fan in any way of Stephen Sondheim.

Still, it was twisted and dark, and in that case, right up my alley.

 

[Dorian Thompson]

Awful lot of fat...
Only where it sat...
"Aven't you got poet
Or Some' in like that?
No, you see the trouble with poet
Is 'ow do you know it's deceased?
Try the priest...

...Is that squire
On the fire?
Mercy, no sir, look closer
You'll notice it's grocer
Looks thicker
More like vicar
No it has to be grocer
It's green....



Certainly a cautionary tale about the dangers of letting revenge consume you. Dumb ass could have helped Anthony get his daughter at any time, then he nearly kills her after he slits poor Lucy's throat. When you think about it, how could it have ended any other way than Toby finishing off good old Sweeney?

The only thing that bugged me in the whole movie was that thin, reedy little girly voice that the actress who played Johanna sang with. For some reason it bugged the hell out of me.

 

[Kegek]

Sweeney Todd was one of my absolute favourite American films from last year. It looked gorgeous, the singing was surprisingly good; and the union of Burton Gothic and Sondheim's grim scoring worked like a charm. The blood was both plentiful and theatric; the blood gushing from Todd's throat at the end of the film almost seeming like tears over his dead wife. The black humour was uproarious; I went into the film with honestly little idea of the plot and was consequently chuckling quite a bit when I realised Mrs. Lovett's rather unorthodox method of corpse removal was going to be. But the biggest surprise... Sascha Baron Cohen... managed not only to be not annoying, but actually funny.

Burton's had a pretty uneven run this decade; and I'm sure there's some of his films we'd rather forget (Planet of the Apes, anyone?). But Sweeney Todd is right up there with Ed Wood in my book.

 

[Christopher]

The only thing that bugged me in the whole movie was that thin, reedy little girly voice that the actress who played Johanna sang with. For some reason it bugged the hell out of me.

Believe me, you don't know how well off you are. The Johanna in the original Broadway cast (and the version available on album and home video) was far more annoying, and apparently she's not the only one. Since the role requires a lot of coloratura singing, the sopranos who generally get cast are performers who specialize in light comedy and bubbly ingenue roles, and they can be quite grating. The original Johanna's voice was painful to listen to. And I once saw a concert performance where the Johanna (Ashley Brown, now a rising Broadway talent, then still a student) was so disgustingly cheery and bouncy that it hurt my eyes to look at her. The movie's Johanna was tons better than most. She at least gave some sense of the sadness and vulnerability Johanna should have, rather than being discordantly perky the whole time.

 

[Alidar Jarok]

I saw the film pretty much as soon as I got back from London. It's definitely one of the more bizzare movies I've seen, but it's still pretty fun. Some of the songs are pretty good and the cast seemed to have fun with it.

 

[wamdue]

I enjoyed this movie, and it had the bonus of Todd killing Ali G, I could forgive him just about anything after that.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

The music was good, although nothing really stuck with me.

The Ballad of Sweeny Todd is the most memorable (that's what I recall from that PBS viewing long ago, plus the part about "shepherd's pie sprinkled with actual shepherd") - and they cut it!

But Sondheim isn't know for catchy tunes. He's more famous for his lyrics, I think.

 

[OmahaStar]

I have a mixture of feelings on this one.

I can't stand the actress who played the daughter Jo.

As for Antony, could anyone buy him as being remotely interested in girls? I don't think so.

And Mrs. Lovette ... Gosh, has Helena Bonham Carter ever been able to act? or sing? She was horrible.

I've seen the Angela Lansbury version, and she was *SO* much better than Carter.

Most everything about the movie was better than the stage version (let's face it, the Todd of the stage version was little more than a singing Herman Munster, and I don't mean that as a compliment).

I wish they could have had 70s-era Angela Lansbury as Mrs. L. in this movie, and it would have been the best of both worlds.

I've seen other versions, including the recent BBC version with David Warner as a blind judge. That one sucked in every imaginable way. I've seen others, too ... I think the music makes the story work. Without it, the story itself is little more than a dismal penny dreadful.

 

[OmahaStar]

The music was good, although nothing really stuck with me.

The Ballad of Sweeny Todd is the most memorable (that's what I recall from that PBS viewing long ago, plus the part about "shepherd's pie sprinkled with actual shepherd") - and they cut it!

But Sondheim isn't know for catchy tunes. He's more famous for his lyrics, I think.

The part about shepherd's pie is in the Depp version. Just heard it on the soundtrack, in fact.

 

[Trippy]

Well I loved it of course...Johnny Depp can never be wrong!

My fave scene was the 'window shopping' scene where Todd and Lovett are shopping for victims on the street from behind their window!

Still hide behind my hands for the bloody stuff...but still a great film...and loved Depp's singing too

 

[wamdue]

I liked the song at the start, about how scummy London is.

 

[Dorian Thompson]

And Mrs. Lovette ... Gosh, has Helena Bonham Carter ever been able to act? or sing? She was horrible.

Oh, I've got to disagree with that. I thought Bonham Carter made a great Mrs. Lovett. Nobody's going to measure up to Angela Lansbury. I've never seen the stage play, but Lansbury is a legend.

 

[Alidar Jarok]

It still is that scummy

OK, not really, but I loved seeing them arrive on boat and go under the Tower Bridge. It was a kickass way to start it.

 

[auntiehill]

Helena Bonham Carter can certainly act, and I like her in almost everything, but her singing is....er....not a match for this powerful a character.

And it doesn't help to have the memory of Angela Lansbury's performance still fresh in my mind. That character was robust, full of energy, loud and vivacious. The limp-lily version that Helena did--while not bad---just didn't have the same impact.

I miss the opening number, too. I think it really sets the tone for the whole thing.

Still, I enjoyed the movie. It's a lot of fun, and still has the great Sondheim lyrics. The one part that I think was better than the play was the "By the Sea" montage. That was hilarious.

For an interesting counterpart, you might rent the dvd of the drama done with Ray Winstone as Sweeny Todd. It's the complete opposite of the musical. It's quiet, simple, realistic and gets into the true motivations of the killer.

 

[Dorian Thompson]

Is the stage musical the same as the film with Sweeney tossing Mrs. Lovett into the oven?

 

[Kegek]

I thought Bonham Carter's singing was passable and her acting was exceptional; which more than made up for any faults with the singing. Of course, the ghoulish makeup job she had sold her just as much as her performance.